Young Pinoy booters having a blast training with Bayern greats

BALI – It's a pretty special thing for one to get to attend training sessions conducted by FC Bayern Munich greats Giovane Elber and Klaus Augenthaler, and so five Filipino youngsters are relishing every moment at the ongoing Allianz Junior Football Camp Asia here.

Aeron Tenollar of Baguio, Konrad Keim Sollorin of Iloilo, JM Mitra of FC Malaya, and Jasper Beruan and Jeofrey Fresado of Gawad Kalinga are having a blast learning drills from the Bayern Munich legends while making new friends and taking in the magnificent sights in this famous tourist destination.

"Okay yung training; kailangan lang mag adjust dahil bago yung environment, bago yung exposure, at magagaling yung kalaban, " Sollorin said during a break in the camp at Finns Recreational Club.

The Pinoy booters are among 49 players from eight Asian countries getting valuable pointers in fitness, footwork and tactical skills from the youth coaches of the Bundesliga champ. From here, some will be chosen for the coming AJFC global camp in Munich for the experience of a lifetime.

"The coaches' told us to have fun and enjoy. And we're enjoying the experience," said Mitra.

The boys are accompanied by coach Jess Landangan and Allianz PNB Life branding communications and digital director Rei Abrazaldo.

"This is very helpful because kids learn a lot how to execute drills and what's the right attitude in doing them," said Landangan.

"They also get to mingle with other players and meet new friends so it's a very good experience to help them develop not only their skills but their characters," he added.

The AJFC participants cap their stint with a tournament Friday to apply what they learned over the last four days.